A Brief Early History of Marinus

By Master Donal macRuiseart

In A. S. IX,
Atlantia did not exist, and the East Kingdom had jurisdiction of all the lands
it now encompasses. But there was nothing there. The
southernmost groups at the time were the Barony of Bhakhail (Philadelphia) and
the nascent Shire of Myrkwoode (Baltimore). Everything south of
those groups was considered wilderness. So it was
when this writer arrived in the area. But it was not wholly
deserted. There were a few SCAdians dwelling in the region, and true
to form, we gravitated towards each other. For a time, we merely
associated informally, but in due course there were enough of us to go about
forming a Shire. But that Shire was not Marinus. The
total numbers were sufficient to form a branch only if those residing on both
sides of the Great River (the James) were counted, and so the areas now known
as Tir-y-Don and Marinus were, for a time, all under the banner of Tir-y-Don.

The Great
River was, at the time, even more a barrier to travel than it is now, and for
that reason those of us living on its southern bank sought pretty early to
forge an identity of our own. Thus it was that little more than a
year after the founding of Tir-y-Don, the southern sister shire was
formed. At first it was to be called Pindar, but that name proved
impracticable, and we in time settled on the name Marinus. The name
is simply a Latinate form of the word “marine,” reflecting the maritime nature
of the area and, at the time, of most of its residents. Most of us
followed the sea in one or another way, as do many Marinusians today.

While we on
the south bank sought to be a separate group, we did not wish to completely
sever the bonds between ourselves and our neighbors to the north, and so before
long the City-State of Dinas Moryn came into being. This was a
confederation of Tir-y-Don and Marinus, whose chief distinction was the Dinas
Moryn Shield Wall, the first organized and disciplined fighting band in the
area and one of the earliest in the East Kingdom. During its
relatively brief history, the Shield Wall was a valued part of the Eastern and
later Atlantian Armies, striking fear into the hearts of all who stood before
its shields, bearing a badge suggesting a wall (Argent masoned sable, a chief
embattled azure and a base point vert.). It was during this time
that Atlantia first began as a Principality, which later grew into a Kingdom.

The
City-State used as its arms the original arms of Tir-y-Don (Per bend sinister
vert and azure, a pile enarched issuant from dexter base, in dexter chief a
laurel wreath Or.) To this Tir-y-Don added the dolphin gules that
still graces its Arms, and Marinus added the trident sable. So for
several years the City-State and its component branches prospered, until
Tir-y-Don decided that it was time to strike out on its own and sought to
discard the confederated group and seek Baronial status on its own. In
the ensuing transition, Tir-y-Don retained the original form of the Arms, retaining
the dolphin; and Marinus retained the style of City-State, while rotating the
pile on its own Arms to assume the form it has today (Per pale vert and azure,
on a pile enarched throughout argent a trident sable, the points environed of a
laurel wreath vert).

With the
passing of a few more years, Marinus had grown to a size that warranted
elevation, but rather than seek Baronial status, it rose to the status of a
Province, the only one in Atlantia’s history. In time, the
distinction of that status lost its savor, and Marinus made the lateral
migration to the style of a Barony. And so it has remained for a
quarter-century, growing in prestige, learning, and prowess; proud to call
itself the Barony by the Sea.